Pop Crackle Boom- Happy Fourth of July

Happy Fourth of July to everyone in the USA- Mandy Calvin

The Writing Wagon

   No one ever said writing was easy.  If writing was easy, every mother's child would be churning out best sellers (we could also make every person in this hypothetical world a bookworm).  The most challenging thing is staying on task and finishing what has been started.  I don't know much about ADHD, but I know that humans in general have short attention spans, especially when it's most needed.  The modern age of technology isn't helpful.  You know what I'm talking about: those shiny mobile devices, iWhatevers, television, and websites.  These aren't a hindrance when the story is pouring through your hands as your transform it into words.  During those times you're the invincible, victorious writer.  Nothing can stop you.  Well, except for yourself. 
   Enter writers' block and play spooky music.  Now is the time when you can easily fall off the wagon.  The flowers and glitter are gone and the hard times have arrived.  But, instead of facing the dilemma, you face the television or browse YouTube for videos of a cat playing the piano.  May be you stay slightly more focused and twitter about it or post about it on facebook.  Then of course you start doing other things, like talking to friends or twittering about what you ate for lunch.  The story doesn't get picked back up until a month latter.  What needs to happen is the toys and gizmos to be put away so the work can be done.  A few pointers to do so:
    - Designate a certain time quota per day to social net working and web browsing so you don't get carried away with it in the first place.  (This could be a good thing all around)
    -Turn cell phone off while you write
    -Take up writing by hand on paper in quite room, later type it.  Sometimes the Internet button a click away is too tempting. 
    -Plan out what you're going to write in your head the day before you write, while you have some free time or as you're about to go to bed.
    -Whatever you do just keep writing.  You can possibly take on an extra writing project

Well I'm not one to talk, I just added onto my distractions by getting a twitter account.  Oh well, I'll manage.  Do you get sidetracked? How do you deal with it?

Juggling for Writers

At the beginning of the summer I read an interview of a writer, and he was asked how he could write so many plots at the same time without getting confused. Apparently he wrote a lot of books. Anyways, he answered that he hardly ever got confused and that by working on so many stories he had little trouble with writer's block. This is because if he was having trouble with one story he could just work on a different one for a while and come back to the other one later. I took this to heart and changed my writing strategy, as an experiment for the summer. I am happy with the results.

I had three writing projects I chose to work on, four if you count this  blog. The three were all at different stages. One was just an idea that needed a solid plot, another had a plot and need the first draft finished, and another was in the edit/rewrite stage. I thought diversity would be best. So I juggled these three stories.

Summer isn't even over and I've gotten more writing done ever in a span of three months. Writing consistently makes writing easier in general, words and ideas just come more smoothly. It's like exercise, if you exercise regularly you don't get so sore, but you get stronger. So far juggling projects has a thumbs up from me.

Vacation from Writer's Block

Your eyes strain at the computer screen, hoping that an idea might just pop out. Instead the cursor just blinks at you, and your mind remains drawing blanks. To be honest you feel like curling up on the couch and sleeping, but your too irritated at yourself to relax. Any minute now an idea just might come and rescue you. <- That right there, or some sort of variation of it, is what having a writer's block is like. Almost anyone who writes has gone through this aggravating feeling. The best cure is probably having some R&R.

Writer's block is extremely irritating; it makes me want to scream and yank my hair out like a mad person. Inevitably it causes stress, and stress leads to sleep deprivation. This all comes around to kick you in the butt, because when you don't get enough sleep your brain doesn't function at top speed, and your creativity is housed in the brain. Think of it like quicksand. First you get writer's block then it makes you all stressed out so you can't get out of it. Now that I think about it, a disease would be a better metaphor, but I could sit here all day thinking of nasty metaphors for writer's block.
What this all does to your health, mentally and physically. It begins with your mental health and works it's way down. You get stressed out and can't stop thinking about it. If you have a bunch of free time it's even worse because that free time is time to think. Like a bird trapped in a building, bashing into a window. You keep hitting the block over and over and over. After a while your head hurts. This constant thinking that leads to dead ends begins encroaching on your health when you are tossing and turning in bed, unable to sleep. When you are able to get to sleep it's a restless one. Then in the morning you're all grouchy and grumpy. Then when you sit down to write, not only are you tired you're two times grumpier than before! This cycle can continue until you nearly go crazy and give up on writing. Even quitting isn't a sure cure. It'll still bug you from the back of your head.
There have been millions of suggested remedies. My cure is a simple vacation. Not only do you need to mentally relax, but also you need to keep your physical health in mind. During this "vacation" all you do live life and make sure you get a good night sleep and eat healthily. If you have a second hobby take it up (unless it's going to add stress). What you never want to do is have yourself sitting around doing nothing-or in front of a blank screen- and letting it gnaw on you. Don't sit down to write unless you have gotten pass your block. You don't forget about the task at hand, just think about it in the back of your mind. The goal is to not get aggravated, because it accomplishes nothing and even discourages you.
So if you catch yourself feeling sleep deprived or depressed from writer's block I'd give this a try.